When a development begins, there is often nothing on the land where there will soon be a thriving neighborhood. The trees have been removed, sections of it have been graded to provide level building areas, and now it is time to begin the new road construction that will allow crews to build and people to inhabit the area. It will take several months for a large community to have all the roads completed, but it will make adding life to the area seem like a ride down the highway once it is completed.
New roads must first be planned out, but that is done before the permits are issued. The crews in charge of creating them will begin with basic preparation of the road bed, so they will need to ensure all surfaces are dug down so they can start their work. The bed itself will generally have a good layer of aggregate to help support the materials and traffic that will travel on it once completed, so this is an important step.
Part of laying the road bed will consist of creating ditches along the side of the roads to carry away rainwater, and some of these ditches will lead to swales. The purpose of the swales is to allow excess amounts of water to seep into the ground slowly to avoid flooding in an area, and they will often be lots spaced throughout the community.
As the road building progresses, the aggregate bed will be covered with whatever paving materials have been chosen. Asphalt is smooth, but it does not always stand up to the weather. Concrete tends to be a bit rougher, but it has a longer wear life because it is reinforced with rebar. These are decisions that have already been made by the design team of the developer, and the road crews will follow their plan.
